Askiitians Tutor Team
Last Activity: 5 Months ago
To convert nanometers (nm) into electron volts (eV), we need to understand the relationship between wavelength and energy. The energy of a photon can be calculated using the formula derived from Planck's equation, which relates energy to wavelength. Let's break this down step by step.
Understanding the Relationship
The energy (E) of a photon is inversely proportional to its wavelength (λ). This relationship is expressed by the formula:
E = \(\frac{hc}{\lambda}\)
Where:
- E = energy in joules
- h = Planck's constant (approximately \(6.626 \times 10^{-34} \, \text{Js}\))
- c = speed of light (approximately \(3.00 \times 10^8 \, \text{m/s}\))
- λ = wavelength in meters
Converting Wavelength from Nanometers to Meters
Since the wavelength is often given in nanometers, we first need to convert nanometers to meters. Remember that:
1 nm = \(1 \times 10^{-9}\) m
So, if you have a wavelength of, say, 500 nm, you would convert it to meters like this:
500 nm = \(500 \times 10^{-9}\) m = \(5.00 \times 10^{-7}\) m
Calculating Energy in Joules
Now, we can plug this value into the energy formula. Using the constants for Planck's constant and the speed of light:
E = \(\frac{(6.626 \times 10^{-34} \, \text{Js})(3.00 \times 10^8 \, \text{m/s})}{5.00 \times 10^{-7} \, \text{m}}\)
Calculating this gives:
E ≈ \(3.98 \times 10^{-19}\) joules
Converting Joules to Electron Volts
To convert joules to electron volts, we use the conversion factor:
1 eV = \(1.602 \times 10^{-19}\) joules
Now, we can convert the energy we calculated:
E (in eV) = \(\frac{3.98 \times 10^{-19} \, \text{J}}{1.602 \times 10^{-19} \, \text{J/eV}}\)
This results in:
E ≈ 2.48 eV
Summary of the Process
To summarize, the steps to convert nanometers to electron volts are:
- Convert the wavelength from nanometers to meters.
- Use the formula \(E = \frac{hc}{\lambda}\) to find the energy in joules.
- Convert joules to electron volts using the conversion factor.
So, for a wavelength of 500 nm, the energy is approximately 2.48 eV. This process can be applied to any wavelength to find its corresponding energy in electron volts.